We ain't gonna work in Maggie's farm no more....

At virtually every meeting of our Constituency Party meeting, with almost monotonous regularity, whatever the subject under discussion, one Amicus shop steward raises the plight of British manufacturing industry. We have almost become anesthetised to it. However, when you see the extent to which some of the most famous brand names in the country have been bought up by overseas companies, you start to see the scale of the problem Malcolm is talking about. Of course, many of the companies listed still manufacture in Britain and the really big job losses only occur when the parent companies choose to shift the manufacturing base. Also, in reality, British capitalists have no more sense of patriotism when it comes to shifting their portfolios about than capitalists world wide, so foreign 'ownership' in a globalised economy, may not be so different in any event. If Britain is to become a post-industrial nation dealing in service industries, retail and the finance sector, Sally Muggeridge poses the question: "At present the clear message we are giving to our brightest and best is that if you want to make things, go somewhere else. The best jobs are in the City, trading in shares and providing financial services. But shares in what exactly, and financial services to whom?"